Christian requested a coconut cake for his birthday last week and I realized I had never made a coconut cake. We both grew up in coconut-loving families, so while I’ve eaten many a coconut cake and pie, this was my first stab at making one on my own. Luckily, this easy recipe was a big hit and I’ll definitely be using it again!
Note/confession: I made two 9 x 9 square cakes and layered them. I didn’t use the entire can of sweetened condensed milk and 14 oz. cream of coconut. I used more like 10 oz. of each and then used the leftover in my coffee for the following week. YUM.
So delicious! These photos are a little dark – I impatiently snapped a few because I needed a bite asap. Priorities. Thanks so much for reading and stay tuned for the winner of the Over the Moon giveaway! XO –
Christian’s grandmother from New Orleans used to make stuffed artichokes for her family, and Christian loved eating them. I’m still not completely sure if this is a Cajun dish or just a Barnes favorite dish, but I had never even heard of stuffed artichokes! I finally had the chance to try one in New Orleans with Christian and my oh my, I quickly saw what the frenzy was about.
I promised him that I would attempt to make them on my own, and I followed this recipe. They were delicious, but I remember them being a little crispier to taste. I think I’m going to try this recipe next because I think they need some time in the oven. Does anyone have a stuffed artichokes recipe worth sharing?
Do you love artichokes? What’s your favorite dish – do share!! Christian says thank you. 🙂 Thanks so much for reading y’all – XO –
As I shared here, my mom was in town this weekend! It was so fun to spend the weekend together, and while at dinner one night I had a cocktail named the “Salty Pear.” The cocktail had several delicious (!!) ingredients, one of them being St. Germain. My mom couldn’t believe I didn’t have a bottle. She was determined to purchase a bottle for us and make us one of her favorite cocktails she discovered at a Dallas restaurant – Cool as a Cucumber.
Serves Two
four slices of cucumber – two per glass
two lime wedges – one per glass (two more if you want to garnish the glasses with lime)
one ginger beer (or you can use ginger ale) split between two glasses
2 oz. St. Germain per glass (or more to taste)
Vodka to taste…depends on your mood, my friends
Muddle two slices peeled cucumber and one lime wedge per glass. Add your ginger beer or ginger ale, St. Germain and vodka. Garnish with a lime wedge if you wish. Enjoy!
Crisp and refreshing – this would be the perfect summer cocktail. If you give it a try let me know what you think! Thanks so much for reading – XO –
When I visited RPM Italian in Chicago, I had the most amazing shredded brussels sprouts salad that the waiter had recommended. I love roasted brussels sprouts and kale, but I had never thought to use brussels sprouts for a salad.
I was determined to try to find a similar recipe to try online and found one that was pretty close. This recipe combines kale and brussels sprouts with a lemon vinaigrette that is so healthy, light and delicious.
A quick and easy salad that I definitely plan to pack for easy weekday lunch. Give it a try and let me know what you think!
Thank you thank you thank you for all of your kind words, advice and encouragement on Friday. I am happy to share that Lula is home and recovering well. She still loves to sleep on my chest and doesn’t rest until she’s on the bed or sofa, so her personality is definitely still the same! I am so thankful to have Christian’s help, I cannot imagine doing this without him. I am praying that we get good results from the pathologist and that Lula regains her balance soon.
Y’all may have read here that one of my 2014 goals was to perfect homemade granola bars for Christian. We both have made it a priority (along with the rest of the world) to be more mindful of the foods we put into our mouths and to try to take advantage of all the fresh and affordable foods California has to offer. Since Christian is on the go at 5AM, a morning granola bar is pretty much a given and he has tried almost every granola and protein bar out there to keep from getting bored. Six months in and he’s already over the store bought processed versions and wanted to try to find a homemade recipe.
Knowing that this was something small I could do to make his mornings a little bit better, I was determined to master a few different kinds and want to try to make him a fresh batch each weekend…we’ll see how long I can keep this up!
Seriously. If you like granola, please try this recipe. I’ve also made these with chocolate chips and they are divine – photo below! Christian has a serious sweet tooth, so naturally the chocolate chip version is currently in the lead.
Thanks so much for reading and if you try one of these recipes, let me know what you think! XO –
I debated even sharing this recipe because it’s so incredibly easy, but it is SO INCREDIBLY DELICIOUS that I had to! I saw the link to this recipe through Cupcakes and Cashmere last week and was immediately interested. I’m a huge s’mores fan…I mean, who isn’t?
Three ingredients. Ten minutes. Life changing.
If you have a small skillet (or big skillet, #yolo), please try this and let me know what you think! How cute would this be in a big skillet for a dinner party dessert?
Thanks so much for reading & y’all don’t forget to enter the Shabby Apple Giveaway! XO –
I love taco soup, tortilla soup, black bean soup – name a Mexican soup or stew and I’m all over it. When I read this crock pot chicken enchilada soup recipe I knew I had to give it a try. Especially because I’m always looking for new crock pot recipes to make my life a little easier and Christian actually loves crock pot recipes. Go figure!
I really love the enchilada twist on this soup – it’s so good and filling and definitely doesn’t taste like your usual taco soup. Give it a shot and let me know what you think!
Yum. I’ll be using this recipe again. I was glad to cook a big batch for the hubs before I left him for NYC. Thanks so much for reading and don’t forget to enter the L.Mae Boutique $250 shopping spree giveaway and The Shelf $500 Zara Giveaway!! XO –
When Christian and I were on our honeymoon, we would have this delicious green juice every morning with our breakfasts. Packed with vitamins and greens but tasty with punches of pineapple, orange and lime, we were seriously into this drink. I may have even gotten some to go and mixed it with tequila by the pool. It’s a vacation, right?
We’ve been adamant about recreating this delicious juice ourselves (minus the tequila), especially after asking one of the sweet waiters what all was in it! We’re slowly but surely getting there and I have to share the best version yet.
Y’all know I’m into using my Vitamix to juice – especially if you’ve read my DIY BluePrintCleanse post. I blend everything in my Vitamix and then use a nut milk bag to strain the juice, removing some (but not all) of the pulp.
2 cups packed spinach
1 cucumber
3 carrots
1 orange
1/3 or 1/4 a pineapple (depending on how much sweetness you like)
2 apples
large handful of mint
juice from half a lime
juice from half a lemon
Combine all ingredients in a blender or juicer. Blend until smooth and strain. Store in an air tight container and drink within 3 days.
Are you into green juice? If you’re hesitant about the green juice and smoothie trend, try this drink. The flavor and sweetness will surprise you!
I love making vegetarian meals with all of the summer vegetables available and this brown butter vegetable skillet pasta looked amazing. The good news is that it tastes even better. I have made this dish at least four times this summer (as long as it’s warm, I call it summer y’all) and it tastes just as good warmed up for lunch as it does for dinner, something that is really important to me when cooking large meals for just Christian and myself.
Without boatloads of cheese this dish would still be amazing…but I mean…why not add boatloads of cheese?
More cheese, please.
Make it. Eat it. And tell me how much you love it.
Add a baked or grilled chicken breast if your family won’t eat vegetarian. So good! Thanks for reading! I’m hungry now. Yums. XO –
When I saw this sandwich on How Sweet It Is (obsessed with this food blog), I knew I was going to be trying it. Caramel. Apple. Brie. What more do I need to know?
This sandwich was so good I ate mine over the sink rather than plating it to sit down. That’s a deliciousness giveaway right there – if you’d rather eat it standing in the kitchen than sitting at the table, it’s good. I’m a big fan of the combination of cheese and bread in any form. They are two of my all time favorite things, in addition to cola bottle gummies, air conditioning and the Real Housewives…but now we’re getting off topic.
This truffle grilled cheese is pretty incredible too, in case the idea of caramel in your sandwich isn’t striking your fancy.
But it should. Oh, it should.
I strongly encourage you to try this sandwich that is breaking all the rules of grilled cheeses. Amazing.Tell me…would you put caramel in your grilled cheese? Thank you for sharing your thoughts!! XO –
I recently took to juicing in my Vitamix now that I have a nut milk bag to drain some of the pulp. I have heard so much about the BluePrintCleanse and have been curious to see what all the fuss is about. $250 for three days worth of juice seems a little pricey when there are so many DIY recipes out there, so I thought I would give it a whirl!
I like to put my juices in cute glasses because deep down in my heart it makes me miss chips and salsa a little bit less. Some of these juices really are so good – like the pinapple-apple-mint juice and cashew milk. I think I’ll keep making these even when not on the cleanse.
Did I follow this cleanse exactly like I should have….no. I slipped a quinoa-spinach-avocado-egg dinner one day and maybe had a handful or two of yogurt covered raisons another day. BUT I mostly drank the juice, and I just wanted a healthy eating head start. I felt energized and awake each day and would definitely recommend this to anyone wanting to kick start a diet or change things up.
Let’s start with the overall grocery list of what you’ll need. These ingredients cost me about $40 at a local community-owned grocery store. I would recommend a farmer’s market or local supplier if you have one available!
The first juice is the green juice that you’ll drink first and third a day for three days. I like to make all the juices for the day the evening before. That way I have a full day’s worth and I can have a fresh batch everyday. Do whatever is easier for you! If you want to make one day’s worth of juice at a time, double this green juice recipe.
The second juice you will drink each day is pineapple, apple and mint. Use more or less mint to your liking – whatever you prefer! I love mint so added a small handful. This is definitely my favorite juice. I can picture adding a little rum and an umbrella straw and sitting on the beach…
The fourth drink you’ll have each day is the spicy lemonade. This is similar to the master cleanse drink that I tried in college for about four hours. This lemonade is by far my least favorite drink of the day. Confession…day two and three I skipped the cayenne pepper. Whoops! Clearly I’m not a rule follower.
The fifth juice is carrots, apple and beets. Be sure to wash your cutting board and blender/juicer immediately after making this as to avoid any beet stains! And definitely don’t grab the pitcher with slippery fingers and shatter the pitcher on the floor, leaving a really fun beet juice murder scene.
The sixth and final juice of the day is the delicious cashew milk. You can use raw almonds if you would like. Whichever you choose, be sure to soak the nuts in a bowl of water for at least three hours before blending.
And that’s a juice cleanse wrap! Would you ever try this? Do you have more willpower than me?
Talk to me.
Thanks for reading and good luck if you plan on trying the cleanse! XO –
Today is my husband’s birthday and the day is not complete without something sweet. For most people, a cupcake or dessert of any sort would be good enough – but not for this guy. Christian takes his “baked goods” seriously and I knew I had to take it to the next level this year since it’s his first birthday as a married man. I couldn’t be all, “Happy Birthday! Here’s a twinkie – oh wait – I think I have a candle somewhere…”
I knew it had to be chocolate. I knew it had to be big. I knew it had to be homemade. And I knew I had to make it the day before his birthday because he will be working at the hospital until about 10pm on his actual birthday (sad face).I followed this recipe for the cake and used my own frosting recipe.
For the frosting…
3 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
6 TB cocoa powder
6 TB room temperature butter
5 TB evaporated milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
In a medium bowl, mix together the sugar and cocoa powder. In a separate small bowl, cream the butter. Gradually alternate between beating in the butter and evaporated milk. Blend in vanilla. Continue to whisk and beat until light and fluffy. Feel free to add more sugar or milk if you want to adjust the consistency.
Happy Birthday Christian. By far and away, the greatest moment of my life was the one when you walked into it.
Oh wait – I just stole that line verbatim from Anne Hathway’s Oscar acceptance speech. HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHBoo!
PS – THANK Y’ALL for entering the earring giveaway and sharing all of your sweet words!!! Cortney Fish from Missouri is the WINNER!! Don’t sweat it if you didn’t win this time around — I have another giveaway coming up soon!
